Justice Ziegler should return campaign donations

Jan. 19, 2017 - Supreme Court Justice Annette Ziegler should return campaign donations she raised in 2016 to avoid the appearance of conflicts of interest and restore public confidence in the Court, Wisconsin Justice Initiative said Thursday.

Ziegler's campaign raised $373,106 last year and had $288,920 on hand for an uncontested race as of Dec. 31.

"Money plays an outsized role in Wisconsin Supreme Court races​," WJI Executive Director Gretchen Schuldt said. "Justice Ziegler should have enough integrity to recognize that she doesn't need the money and that keeping it will only further damage the already tainted image of the Court."

Ziegler is unopposed in the April 4 election.

In a letter to the justice, Schuldt said Ziegler should especially consider returning donations of $1,000 or more.

Ziegler received 86 donations of $1,000 or more in 2016. Those large donations totaled $267,800, or almost three-quarters of the total amount her campaign raised, records show. Twelve donors kicked in $10,000 or more.

Ziegler accepted $1,000 from the Wisconsin Bankers Association PAC, according to her campaign's January finance report, The Association is one of the corporate lobbying groups that signed a letter to Gov. Scott Walker urging him to grant pay raises to Ziegler and other judges in the state.

The charts below show only individual donations of $1,000 or more. Multiple donations totaling $1,000 or more are not included. The Realtors Political Action Committee, the political arm of the Wisconsin Realtors Association, for instance, made three $500 donations to Ziegler's campaign on June 23, for a total of $1,500. Those donations are not shown. The Realtors Association also signed on to the letter asking Walker to give raises to judges.

"Justice Ziegler took money from all sorts of people -- lawyers, executives, even a judge -- who have direct stakes in how she rules," Schuldt said. "She took money after it became clear she would not have an opponent. She ought to show that she still has the strength of character to say 'No, thank you,' give the money back, and place the interests of the people of Wisconsin above her own."​

The mission of the Wisconsin Justice Initiative is to improve the quality of justice in Wisconsin by educating the public about legal issues and ​encouraging civic engagement in and debate ​about the judicial system and its operation. WJI does not endorse candidates.